


Evenly Matched

by Supersteffy



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Feelings, Feels, Fun, I love me some socially unsure Kaiba, It's like a slowburn, LLF Comment Project, Long Live Feedback Comment Project, M/M, Mokuba is the wiser sibling, No Smut, Online Dating, POV Kaiba Seto, Post-Canon, but with all of the middle removed, dating apps, new crush butterflies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-08-20 18:20:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20232277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Supersteffy/pseuds/Supersteffy
Summary: Seto has never really given dating much thought, but when Mokuba downloads a dating app onto his phone, Seto decides to try it out. While browsing profiles, he happens across Joey's and decides to have some fun--at least, it's fun until his plan backfires and he ends up falling for him.





	Evenly Matched

**Author's Note:**

> I chose an "M" rating because of mentioning things like dick pics and sexual preferences, but there is no actual sex in this.
> 
> I wrote this as a sort of celebratory fic. A few of my Puppyshipping/Violetshipping fics have reach 250+ kudos, and Success Probability 0% surpassed 300! I honestly never expected that, and I'm so happy that so many people have enjoyed my stories! You guys rock! So as a thanks for all of the support and love, here's a new fic. I hope you all enjoy it as much as the others!
> 
> Special thanks to [ryou-bee](https://ryou-bee.tumblr.com/) for beta'ing this! You rock!

“_God_, took you long enough,” Mokuba grumped when Seto entered the TV room, fresh from his shower.

“I didn't realize I was on a time limit,” Seto drawled, arms crossed over his bare chest.

Mokuba rolled his eyes. “Bro, I've got long hair to deal with, and I _ still _ got done before you. The popcorn's not hot anymore,” he added, shaking the bowl of buttery kernels.

Seto shrugged and grabbed his phone off the coffee table before joining Mokuba on the couch.

Mokuba scooted over next to Seto. His freshly washed hair had already made a damp splotch on his pajama top, and Seto shivered when it brushed against him.

“Your hair is cold,” Seto complained, nudging Mokuba away.

Mokuba flipped his hair so it smacked Seto like a wet blanket.

“Put a shirt on and you won't be cold.”

Seto glared at him as Mokuba reached for the remote and turned on the TV.

“I was perfectly comfortable until you dripped all over me.”

Mokuba shrugged, pulling up Netflix.

Sighing, Seto unlocked his phone. He frowned down at an unfamiliar app that hadn't been there when he'd checked it before his shower.

“Mokuba.”

His brother paused his browsing. “Hmm? What?”

“Have you been messing with my phone again?”

Mokuba glanced at the screen and snickered. “If by ‘messed with’ you mean ‘improved.’”

“Stop downloading trash onto my phone.”

“It's just a dating app.”

Seto froze in the act of deleting the app. “What?”

Mokuba laughed as he continued flicking through the selection. “Tons of people use them, bro. I figured, with your work schedule and lack of people skills, it'd be right up your alley.”

“I don't know why I bother putting a lock screen on here,” Seto muttered, letting the app drop back to the screen. “I should have never taught you how to hack.”

Mokuba shrugged again. “Delete it if you want. What about this one?”

Seto glanced up at the TV, not even registering the movie Mokuba had picked before returning to his phone. “Sure.”

Mokuba set the movie to play and Seto opened up his email. He fell into the familiar rhythm of answering and deleting emails with the movie and Mokuba's commentary in the background.

Mokuba grew quiet about halfway through the film, and Seto looked up from his phone to see he was out cold. The bowl of mostly-eaten popcorn was on the verge of falling off his lap.

Tucking his phone away, Seto got up and retrieved the remote, shutting off the TV. Carefully moving the bowl and saving the maids a bit of a mess, he picked up Mokuba and carried him to his room.

His brother stirred when Seto tucked him under the covers, but didn't wake. Smiling to himself, Seto smoothed the hair from Mokuba's face.

“Goodnight, Mokuba.”

Closing Mokuba's door quietly, Seto headed down the hall to his own room.

After switching on the light, Seto settled onto his king-sized bed. The deep blue satin duvet and pillow cases felt cool against his bare back, but they warmed quickly from his body heat. Pulling out his phone again, he paused after unlocking it, seeing the innocuous dating app still on the main screen.

The icon depicted a speech bubble with two hearts linked within. Seto snorted at the corny image.

_ Why the hell not? _ he thought, and opened the app.

The login page greeted him, and Seto clicked on “Create A Profile!” He frowned at the box labeled first name. Putting his actual name was sure to lure in all of the crazies and scammers, and if he was even remotely considering trying it out, he wanted to weed out undesirables as much as possible.

After a bit of internal debate, he decided to use the surname he was born with; Hashimoto was a common enough last name that no one was likely to connect it to him, even if they knew his birth name. For the first name he chose Suoh--if he had a chance to change his name to anything, “Dragon” was at the top of the list. He filled in the other general information and was pleased to see that the app used tags rather than drop down options for both the gender and orientation sections. After filling in “Male” for the former and adding “Gay” and “Demi” tags for the latter, he moved on to the next section.

He spent far longer on the profile than he'd originally intended. He clicked inside the text box, then just stared at it. Seto realized he had no idea what an online dating profile should contain. So he googled it.

Many of the articles he found suggested including small details about himself and to think of his profile as the start of a conversation. One of them described it as “campaigning” for dates, which made him snort. If there was one thing he knew about campaigns, it's that they were all about appearances and rarely about accuracy. Another said to show his “quirky side,” which gave him pause.

Pulling the app up again, he looked at the conversation starters it provided for further inspiration. Some of the suggestions like “What do you like to do in your spare time?” and “Describe your dream vacation!” were decent, while others like “What would you do if you won a million dollars?” just made Seto chuckle to himself.

In the end, he used a few of the more interesting examples he'd found as a template and went from there. After a few false starts, he typed out a favorite quote--something else the examples had included--and a general rundown of himself:

** _ “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” -Helen Keller _ **

** _ I'm a businessman and an avid SciFi enthusiast. I’m fluent in several languages and I'm good with computers. _ **

Seto chuckled to himself at the understatement.

**_In my spare time, I enjoy playing video games, spending time _ _with my younger brother, and dueling._**

He stopped and tried to think of other things he could add without giving away his actual identity. Figuring he could always add to it later, Seto saved the profile, double checked his alarm was set, and plugged in the phone before turning off the light.

X

“Umm…bro? Is this supposed to be your profile?”

Seto looked up from pouring his coffee. He frowned when he saw Mokuba peering at his phone, his bowl of Lucky Charms momentarily forgotten.

“Put my phone down. Stop snooping.”

Mokuba ignored him, snorting as he read.

“Wooow, Seto. Are you trying to find a date or a job? This reads like a resume.”

Seto snatched his phone back as he took a seat opposite Mokuba at the kitchen island.

“I was just messing around,” Seto muttered as he minimized the app and pulled up his investment portfolio.

“Riiiight, “ Mokuba said, smirking. “Well, if you’re looking to ‘mess around,’ dating apps are good for that.”

Seto’s face warmed. “Stop,” he warned, and Mokuba laughed.

“If you want, I could help you spice up your profile,” Mokuba offered.

Seto glanced up through his bangs. “I told you, I was just messing around on it. I'm not actually planning to use it.”

Mokuba shrugged and went back to his cereal. Several long minutes ticked by in silence.

“What was bad about it?” Seto eventually asked.

Mokuba hid a grin behind a sip of juice.

“I mean, it's boring for one. It has no personality.”

Seto scoffed at his phone. “Sorry I'm so dull.”

“I didn't say_ you’re _ boring--I said your profile is. Here.” Abandoning his bowl, Mokuba came around the island to sit beside Seto. “Open the app.”

Seto huffed but backed out of the banking app he'd been in and tapped open the dating app.

“Okay, so, listen. It's not so much what you put on here as _ how _ you presented it. It's too formal. You have to think of your profile as marketing yourself. If your profile doesn't grab people's attention, they won't click on it, so you have to make yours stand out. Here, I'll show you mine as an example.”

Mokuba pulled out his own phone and Seto frowned at the screen.

“You have a profile?”

“Mm-hm. I told you, everyone uses dating apps now.”

“Let me rephrase. _ Why _ do you need a dating profile?”

Mokuba sent him a disbelieving look. “Bro. C'mon.”

“Delete it,” Seto ordered, sipping his coffee. “You're too young.”

Mokuba rolled his eyes. “As if. You may have hang-ups about dating, but I don't. _ Normal _ people start dating in high school.”

“You should never settle for being normal.”

Mokuba perked up. “Hey! That would make a pretty good quote for your profile.”

“Mokuba…”

Ignoring the warning in his brother's tone, Mokuba pulled up his page. Seto couldn't help but notice a large number of notifications from multiple people.

“Okay, so on mine I mention how much I love video games and stuff, and I list a couple of my all-time favs. I also mention a few of my side hobbies and what I most look for in friends and dates.”

Letting the uncomfortable subject of his brother's personal life drop, Seto leaned in and looked at Mokuba's phone. His eyebrows drew together as he read.

“You mention that you work outside of school, but you don't say what you do,” Seto noted.

“Yeah, like I said, it's not a resume. If people want to know about my job, they can PM me. Your profile isn't meant to tell people everything about who you are, just give them an idea of things you like so they know if they have common ground with you.”

Seto considered that as he reread Mokuba's bio, paying particular attention to the tone of his writing. Comparing it to his own, Seto understood what Mokuba meant about his needing “spicing up”.

“I suppose mine does sound a bit dry,” he reflected out loud.

Mokuba nodded and opened Google, typing out a search.

“It's not easy to get across a person's personality while summing them up in a couple hundred words, and in your case, well…” Mokuba flicked a glance at Seto, who raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him. “Let's just say you’re a bit more complicated than most people.”

Seto frowned at that. “Or, let's _ not _ just say that and you explain to me what you really mean by it.”

Mokuba sighed and looked up at the ceiling, choosing his words carefully.

“Okay, like, don't take this the wrong way,” Mokuba began, and Seto steeled himself. “Most people tend to like people who are fun--not to say you _ aren't _ fun, but you don't really show your fun side to most people. And even when you do…well, I think most people don't realize you're being fun? Like, you're subtle about it.”

“...I'm subtle about being fun? What does that even mean?”

Mokuba gave a frustrated groan. “I'm not explaining it right. Okay, so, like, you're sarcastic when you're playing around, but you're_ also _ sarcastic when you're being mean to people, and although _ I _ know you well enough to tell the difference, most people don't, and you-sort-of-just-comeoffasajerkmostofthetime.”

Seto blinked at his brother as Mokuba hunched his shoulders, expecting backlash.

“So…you're saying I need to be nicer.”

“Uh, kinda? I mean, if you want people to like you, then that's sort of important. You can also be upfront with people about the sarcasm though. Here.”

Mokuba grabbed Seto's phone and typed in the four digit PIN on the lock screen.

“Wait, you've just been unlocking it with the PIN this whole time? I thought you were hacking it.”

Mokuba raised his eyebrows at him in his patented “Really bro?” expression. “It took me like, six failed attempts to figure out it was just the number pad equivalent of BEWD. You know, for a guy who invented life-like holograms and sets the bar for being Extra, you can be surprisingly one-note. Speaking of dragons, is Skyrim still your favorite game?”

Seto was prepared to defend himself, but he answered the question instead. “I haven't played it in quite a while.”

“Not what I asked, bro.”

Seto sighed. “Yes, I suppose it is.”

Mokuba nodded. He typed for a minute before shoving Seto's phone in his face.

“Okay, what do you think?”

Taking the device, Seto read over the new profile Mokuba had mocked up for him:

_ “**It’s okay to be a glow stick. Sometimes we have to break before we shine.” -Unknown **_

** _ Businessman by day, SciFi nerd by night. Sarcasm is my superpower, and idiots my Kryptonite. _ **

** _ In my spare time I enjoy playing video games, hanging out with my younger brother, and dueling. My current game obsession is Skyrim, although I don't have much time to play it._ **

“This isn't me at all,” Seto objected. “It’s false advertising.”

“No, it's creative license.” Mokuba met Seto's glower with a cocky grin. “Well, was anything I said really a lie?”

Seto thought about that for a moment.

“I'm not obsessed with Skyrim.”

Mokuba rolled his eyes.

“I know; you're obsessed with Duel Monsters. But this gives people an idea of the types of games you like, while also suggesting an interest in dragons. Besides, I'm assuming the fake name means you don't want people knowing who you are right away--probably a good idea, since they won't have any preconceived notions about you that way. I figured this would give you something to talk about that isn't related to dueling.”

Acknowledging the wisdom of that, Seto moved on to his next concern.

“You changed my quote.”

“Uh, yeah. It's a nice quote, but it's kinda too serious for an icebreaker. This one gets a similar point across, but in like, a more upbeat sorta way. You can change it back if you want, though.”

“No, I'll keep it,” Seto decided. “It's…catchier.”

Mokuba grinned. “Ex_actly _! See, this is why you should let me take on a more active role in the PR department.”

It was Seto's turn to roll his eyes. “Don't start. We discussed this.”

Mokuba huffed and picked up his own phone to check his notifications. “Fine. But if I can manage to get you a date with this profile, you should reconsider. It's not like I haven't helped out before, and I've never let it affect my school work.”

“Why did you delete the part about me being multilingual?” Seto asked, changing the subject. “People like people who can speak other languages--right? That's an attractive quality.”

“Uh, I guess? I mean, it's impressive, and some people probably find it attractive, I'm just not really sure it's something you would want in your profile. Like I said, the point is to grab people's attention while showcasing what makes you unique.”

Seto contemplated that for a moment. “What if I mention that one of the languages is Klingon?”

Mokuba's eyes rounded and he burst into laughter. “Seriously?”

Seto pursed his lips together and set the phone aside to reach for his coffee. “Forget it.”

“No! I think that's a great idea, I just can't believe I didn't know you spoke _ Klingon_!”

Seto set the coffee back down. “Oh.”

“Do you have a fun example to put with it? Like something funny they say in the show?”

“Perhaps…”

Picking the phone back up, Seto typed quickly before handing it off to Mokuba.

** _ I’m fluent in several languages, but my favorites are French and Klingon. My favorite quote in Klingon is: “potlhbe’chugh yay qatlh pe’’eghlu’.” (If winning is not important, why keep score?)_ **

Mokuba giggled. “That's awesome! Shows how much of a nerd you really are, but in a fun way. And that quote is very you.”

Seto smirked, sipping his coffee. “I know.”

They worked together for a bit until Mokuba had to get ready to meet with some friends.

“Okay, that should get you started,” he said, rinsing his bowl and placing it in the dishwasher. “I don't know what time I'll be home, but I'll text you later once I know.”

Seto nodded and gave Mokuba a quick hug. “Have fun. Be safe.”

“I will. Don't work too hard!” he called back, heading up the main staircase.

Saving the changes they'd made, Seto closed the dating app and topped off his coffee before heading upstairs to his office.

X

Seto had been working on the details of his latest Duel Disk for the past few hours when his stomach growled, reminding him that a pot of coffee and a banana was not a well-balanced breakfast. Deciding he could use a short break anyway, Seto made his way down to the kitchen to reheat one of the plates of food his chef had prepared solely for that purpose.

Pulling out his phone, Seto decided to check his email while he waited for the food to warm. He paused before selecting the email icon, seeing a notification counter over the dating app. Curious, he clicked it open.

Two of the notifications were just welcome messages thanking him for joining and explaining how certain features worked. The third was from a person, the notification showing a small preview picture of a dark-haired man and claiming that he wanted to connect with Seto. Clicking open the PM, Seto frowned at the message.

_>Hey Baby! You got a pic?_

Clearly he didn't, which was why his profile picture placeholder was a blank silhouette of a person. Seto didn't appreciate being called pet names by a complete stranger or the inane question, so he deleted the chat and moved on.

They only seemed to get worse.

The next guy had set his profile pic to a close up of really nice abs. Seto supposed that should have been a warning sign, since the only thing the man had sent in his message was a headshot of his second head.

_ Blocked _.

The one after that was a woman, and Seto had half a mind to send her a message about respecting people's tags before opening the message and realizing it was clearly a porn bot.

_ Blocked _.

By the time he got to the final message, he was already losing confidence in this idea. The profile pic was of a dragon rather than a person, and Seto almost deleted it without opening it, but once again, his curiosity got the better of him.

_>Hi! Like your profile! What's your favorite part about Skyrim?_

Seto blinked at the question for a moment. Well, at least someone had read his profile. Giving his answer a thought, Seto typed out a reply.

_>I really liked the gray moral choice of the main story line, which forces you to either side with racists, or the very people that tried to kill you in the beginning._

Hitting send, Seto clicked on the profile pic to read the man's bio, noting that it had “Gay” and “Kinky” and “Top” listed in the tags, along with a series of accepted sex acts. Seto wasn't sure why the man would disclose the nature of his sexual tastes, but perhaps that was to weed out people with non-compatible appetites early on?

He’d barely finished reading the man's profile before he received a reply.

_ >Ya that was cool. I had a hard time choosing a side. My favorite part was the dragon riding._

_ >I found that disappointing. What's the point in riding the dragons if you can't steer them at all? They could have at least given the player a dragon taming/riding skill, and the higher it got, the more control you had while flying._

_ >I've got a dragon you can ride ;)_

Seto stared at the message, his hope sinking.

_ >I promise you won't be disappointed :P _

_ >You wanna see it?_

And just that quickly Seto gave up. Any iota of enjoyment Seto had gotten from the short exchange died. Clenching his jaw in irritation, he didn't bother to reply, just blocked the man before going to his own profile page. He edited the tags to include things like “No Hookups”, “No Dick Pics”, and “No Pet Names”, momentarily grateful that the app allowed people to freely tag.

Saving the changes, Seto re-reheated his lunch, the timer having beeped a while ago while he was too absorbed to hear it. Plate in hand, Seto went back to his office and escaped back into his work, feeling more stressed than before he'd taken a break.

X

Seto sank down onto his bed and ran his hands over his face. He'd spent the better part of the day working, stopping long enough to have dinner with Mokuba before holing up in his office again. He'd noticed some serious flaws in the Duel Disk's new design and had spent most of his day reworking the entire thing. It had been a productive day, but the back track made it feel like an enormous waste of time.

Sighing, Seto dropped his hands. It was already going on two in the morning, and he knew he should get to sleep, but his brain buzzed with all of the things he still had to do. Grabbing a melatonin from the bottle on his bedside table, Seto downed it, along with half a bottle of water, then pulled out his phone while he waited for it to take effect.

Once more, the small circle over the little dating app signaled he had messages waiting for him. He had half a mind to just delete the stupid thing and be done with it. He pressed and dragged it over “uninstall”. 

_ Do you want to uninstall this app? _

Seto hovered over the “yes” for a moment before tapping “cancel”. He couldn't bring himself to do it. Seto was many things, but he was not a quitter, and he wasn't going to delete the app until he had exhausted all of it's potential.

Settling on a more direct approach, Seto ignored the notifications pending in his inbox to instead started browsing the profiles of "possible matches" near him.

Setting the parameters for his search, Seto selected tags like "female", "straight", "looking for hook-ups", and "dtf" in the "exclude from search" section. Hoping that would help weed out some of the more undesirable matches, he hit search.

Perusing the profiles that appeared, Seto scrolled down the near-inexhaustible list of people. A lot of the men pictured were quite attractive, aesthetically speaking, but each time Seto glanced at their tags or read their profiles, there was one thing or another that had him moving on down the list. This guy wasn't looking for a relationship; that guy was unemployed; the next one wanted someone who enjoyed hiking as much as he did.

Was he being too picky? Seto wondered. There wasn't anything wrong with having high standards, right? He brought a lot to the table, so why should he settle for someone who couldn't?

Adjusting his search criteria, he added "Duel Monsters" and "duelist" to the "include in search" filters and tried again.

This yielded better results. Seto even recognized a few of the faces from tournaments, recalling their rankings. Seto starred a couple of them to consider for later.

A lot of the profiles were vague or bland, and Seto was suddenly very grateful for Mokuba's meddling. At least his profile had a bit of character. Seto was about to close the app and turn in for the night when he scrolled down to another familiar face and froze.

Pouffy blonde hair half obscured his golden eyes, but Seto recognized Joey Wheeler even before he glanced at the name to confirm that he wasn't imagining things. In the picture, Wheeler flashed the camera a goofy grin and a peace sign, and Seto recognized the Kaiba Dome stadium in the background. At a guess, the photo was recent, taken at the regional tournament Seto had hosted a few months back.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Seto pulled up Joey's profile. He gawked at the first paragraph.

** _ Ok...Let's get the awkward questions out of the way. YES, I am a natural blonde, so YES, the carpet matches the drapes. What ya see is what ya get, baby! ;)_ **

_ Who puts something like that on a public profile? _ Seto wondered. Joey Wheeler, apparently.

** _ I enjoy Duel Monsters, the Fast and Furious movies, and romantic walks to the taco truck. I can't stand scary movies, anchovies, or hypocrites. I'm a tell-it-like-it-is kinda guy, and I prefer people who aren't afraid to speak their mind. _ **

** _ My idea of a great Friday night is hanging with my friends. Bowling, boards games, movies, you name it! I enjoy the finer things in life, like cheap beer and greasy food. _ **

** _ If I sound like your kinda guy, shoot me a PM saying which meme speaks to you!_ **

Seto smirked as he scrolled back up to Joey's profile picture. If he were honest with himself, the Mutt _ did _ look pretty good in it. He considered moving on to the next profile, but he never could resist messing with Wheeler. Before he'd made a conscious decision to, Seto hit the PM button by Joey's name.

_ >Grumpy Cat is my spirit animal._

Seto snorted at his own message, considering it. It didn't really sound like him--but that was the point, wasn't it? Hitting send before he could second guess himself, Seto minimized the app and opened his calendar to check his schedule for Monday. Not a minute later though, the phone made an unfamiliar chime and a notification informed him Joey had responded.

He hadn't expected a response tonight considering it was now past two a.m. Reopening the chat screen, Seto read over Joey's response.

_ >Hey! hows ur nite? Like ur profile :)_

Seto blinked at the words. Before he could respond, Joey sent another message.

_ >Any reason u dont hav a pic?_

Seto considered how to answer that. Telling the truth would put an end to the conversation very quickly. Figuring a half-truth was the best option, he typed back:

_ >I'm not comfortable posting pictures of myself online. Once it's out there, you lose all control over it. Besides, I'd rather people judge me for my character rather than my looks._

Seto stared at the ellipsis at the bottom while Joey typed, ignoring the small bit of tension clenching his gut.

_ >Thts fair. 2 mny peps on here r jus lookin 4 hookups n will pm u wo even readin ur bio if they lik ur pic n since u tagged urslf as demi thts prob the last thing ur lookin 4_

Seto nodded to himself. He wasn't sure what he was looking to get out of the app, but a hook up with some random stranger wasn't it.

_ >Hey not 2 cut this short but I was jus headin 2 bed when I got ur msg. Can we pick this up 2mrw?_

Glancing up at the small clock at the top of his screen, Seto saw it was close to 2:30.

_ >I'd like that._

_ >Cool! :) Hav a gn! Ttyt_

_ >Good night._

Seto stared at the short conversation. It was probably the most civil exchange they'd ever had and Wheeler had no idea who he was even talking to. _This could be fun_, Seto thought. Then again, screwing with Wheeler usually was.

Plugging in his phone, Seto turned off the light and sank beneath the sheets. He strategized how he was going to mess with Joey until the melatonin kicked in, and fell asleep with a grin on his face.

X

The next day Seto holed up in his home office again, tweaking the changes he'd made to the Duel Disk the day before. He took a break to eat a salad around one, idly checking to see if Joey had messaged him on the dating app as he ate. He hadn't. Figuring Joey was most likely at work and would message when he was free, Seto flicked over to his own profile.

He liked the bio Mokuba had helped him create, but the page itself felt bland. He searched through the personalization options for decorating the profile page, but the selection was limited and unimaginative. Glancing at the time, Seto figured he'd accomplished enough to allow himself a little time to indulge.

It took less than ten minutes for him to figure out how to hack the app and insert in a few personal touches. He changed the background, coding it to a gif of the Aurora Borealis that actually shifted colors. Next he made the text boxes a solid black with white text so it wasn't lost in the background. He made a few other subtle changes, replacing the font to something more elegant and adding a snarky hover message to his blank profile pic.

He played around with the coding for longer than he'd planned, and the next time he glanced at the time, more than an hour had passed. Saving his changes, Seto closed the app and forced himself back to work.

Three hours later, Seto's phone _ ping _ed with a new message. Seto finished the line of code he'd been writing before grabbing his phone and opening his chat with Joey.

_ >Damn! Ur pg looks snazzy Howd u get ur bg 2 look lik tht? I dont c tht option on mine_

_ >I hacked it._

Seto realized after sending the message that he probably shouldn't have admitted that, since it was not only illegal, but was most probably in violation of the app's terms of service and likely to get him banned.

_ >Rly? Thts fuckin cool! _

Seto smirked to himself.

_ >Just one of my many talents._

_ >Lol ;) I bet_

Seto rolled his eyes, but glanced back to the screen when Joey sent another message.

_ >My brks almst ovr but do u wnt 2 talk 2nite?_

Seto took a second to decipher the message before responding.

_ >Sure._

_ >K ttyt!_

Seto felt a warm, jittery sensation in his stomach, and frowned. Pushing the feeling from his mind, he opened up the coding for the new Duel Disk's interface.

X

The _ pinging _ started up in the early evening.

Saving and backing up the progress he'd made, Seto grabbed his phone and pulled up Joey's newest message.

_ >Heya! U free 2 talk?_

Seto had a sarcastic quip at the ready before remembering that Joey didn't know who he was talking to. Pressing his lips thin in thought, Seto figured he should be civil--at least for now.

Seto answered as he walked down to the TV room and took a seat on the couch. 

_ >Sure _.

He considered asking how Joey's day had gone, but that seemed like a lame way to start the conversation. Seto snorted to himself when Joey beat him to it, asking him exactly that.

_ >It was fine. Productive._

_ >O? Wyd all day?_

Seto thought over his answer, not wanting to give too much away.

_ >I was working on designs for my job._

_ >Wat knd of designs? Wat do u do?_

Again, Seto paused, deciding on a half-truth to skirt the topic.

_ >I can't really discuss details--company policy. But it deals with cutting edge technology._

Seto smirked at his words. It may have been boastful, but it was also a fact, and Seto was exceedingly proud of his accomplishments. The smug look fell with a jolt of panic when Joey replied:

_ >Cuttin edge? U wldnt hppn 2 wrk 4 KC wld u?_

Before Seto could even begin to frame a reply, Joey continued.

_ >I have a few frnds tht work thr_

_ >My bddy Ryou wrks as a game dvlpr thr_

Seto stared at the words as if they were in another language--with Wheeler's horrid shorthand it practically was. Seto hadn't realized Ryou Bakura worked for him, but then again, he never really spent much time in the gaming portion of R&D.

He wasn't sure what other friends Wheeler might have been referring to, though. Unless he was referring to Mokuba? He could have also lumped Seto into that category; he and the rest of that group never gave up the delusion that Seto was their friend, no matter how many times he protested.

Another _ ping _ drew him from his thoughts.

_ >So I undrstnd if u cnt tlk abt it_

Seto took a thoughtful breath before responding. It was probably fine to admit he worked at Kaiba Corp. He employed thousands of people, after all, and_ technically _ it wasn't a lie, just an omission.

_ >I also work in R&D, but a bit higher up in a different branch. Can't really talk about specifics though._

_ >Thts cool. I get it._

_ >So, how was your day?_

Seto waited a few minutes while Joey typed out a lengthy response.

_ >Good. Had 2 wrk. Ended up pickin up xtra hrs frm a cowrkr so Im whooped but @ least the pychk will be rly nic. I wrk @ burger world rn, but Im tryin 2 build a rep 4 myself as a duelist. I plan on quittin bw n duelin' FT once I win enof 2 attrct a sponsor._

Seto reread the paragraph a few times in an effort to decipher it. He began typing out a reply when he heard the front door open.

"SETO I'M HOME!" Mokuba bellowed up the stairs in the foyer.

"TV room," Seto called back.

Deleting the text he'd started, Seto sent a new message.

_>My brother just got home. Give me a moment._

Seto looked up as Mokuba entered with a quizzical look on his face.

"Hey. You aren't in your office?"

"I was taking a break."

Mokuba glanced at the lifeless TV screen and back to Seto with an eyebrow raised.

"Watching what, 'The Void'?"

Seto shot him a dry look. "Yes. I hear it gets really good around season three."

Seto's phone _ pinged _ and he glanced down at Joey's message, but didn't open it.

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "Tch. Whatever, bro. I'm going to grab a snack."

"I'll join you in a moment."

Mokuba turned and headed toward the kitchen, and Seto pulled up the message.

_ >Thts cool._

Seto nodded to himself. He set his phone to vibrate before following after Mokuba.

Stepping into the kitchen, Seto found Mokuba kneeling on the counter and scrounging in the snack cupboard.

Seto sighed and laid his phone on the island counter.

"Get off the counter. We have a step stool."

"It's faster to just climb up and grab it," Mokuba argued, hopping down with a bag of Cheetos in his hand.

"Did you have fun?" Seto asked, walking over and grabbing an electric kettle from its base on the counter.

"Yeah. We went to go see that new slasher parody movie. It was great! I think you'd like it. Then we walked around the mall for a bit and chilled at the arcade."

Seto nodded and made a small noise to show he was listening as he filled the kettle with water and set it to heat up.

Seto's phone buzzed on the island counter. He ignored it, grabbing a box of sweetener from the upper cupboard, but a minute later the phone buzzed again. By the third time, he noticed the curiosity in Mokuba's eyes and snatched it up before Mokuba decided to.

"Who keeps messaging you?" Mokuba asked, licking fake cheese from his fingers.

"It's nothing," Seto dismissed as he pulled a box of jasmine tea out of a drawer, hoping Mokuba would let the matter drop.

No such luck. 

Mokuba's lips twisted into a mischievous smile. "It's someone from the dating app, isn't it?"

Seto frowned. "No one important. Just some idiot I chatted with briefly."

Another _ buzz _ rang out, and Seto's hand clenched around the phone. 

"Aren't you going to see what they said?"

Seto shrugged, setting the phone beside the kettle to pour steaming water over his tea bag. Steeping it, he feigned indifference as Mokuba continued to watch him. After a moment, Mokuba rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Whatever, bro," he said, hopping off his stool with his snack in-hand. "I'm going to go play some games."

"All of your homework is done?" Seto asked, his gaze boring into Mokuba's.

"Yep."

Seto held his stare a moment longer before giving a curt nod.

"Don't forget," Mokuba called over his shoulder, "you promised we could have pizza tonight. I'll call it in around seven and drag you from your office when it gets here. Usual order?"

Seto nodded again, and Mokuba gave him a big grin before scampering off toward the living room.

Seto listened to Mokuba's footsteps fade. When he was certain his nosy sibling wasn't going to double back to snoop, he pulled up Joey's messages.

_ >Hey my frnds jus invited me 2hang _

_ >U can fell free 2txt me tho _

_ >I'll hav my fone on me but I might no respnd rite away _

_ >Or we can talk l8r if ur bz_

Seto blinked at the messages. Joey's shorthand for texting was even more rough on the eyes than his abrasive accent was on the ears, but Seto was surprised that he was already becoming adept at interpreting it.

_ >I have more work to get done anyway. We can talk later._

_ >Ok gn then _

_ >Dont wrk 2 hrd _

Seto snorted at that, typing out a quick_ , Goodnight. _

Staring at the words, Seto hesitated before sending a final reply.

_ >Talk to you tomorrow? _

Laying his phone aside, Seto drank the last of his tea before rinsing out the cup. The phone _ buzz_ed once more and he pulled it out to check Joey's message.

_ >U bet! ;) _

X

Seto and Joey continued to text back and forth over the next week, and Seto idly wondered how long he planned to keep the game going. It wasn't until two weeks steadily melted into a month that Seto realized that he hadn't really done anything to mess with Joey since initiating contact. They sort of just…talked. And Seto had found himself actually enjoying the conversations, looking forward to the next message.

Laying in bed one morning, Seto frowned at his phone screen, rereading the last message Joey had sent him.

_ >gn Suoh! ttyt _

Suoh. Not Seto. It was a small detail, a necessary one in order for the illusion to work, but Seto found himself more and more troubled by the facade as their conversations deepened.

At first they'd talked about inconsequential things--work, hobbies, interests--but it didn't take long before the conversations changed. They still talked about minor things, but they also talked about their families, although Joey thought Mokuba's name was Michio.

Joey had opened up to Seto about some darker aspects of his past, confessing to his old gang affiliations, which Seto had heard rumors about in school. He also talked about the way his father had emotionally and physically abused him, which Seto hadn't known. Fully aware that he was learning these intimate details under false pretenses, Seto had felt compelled to reciprocate, talking carefully but at length about being mistreated and manipulated by his adopted father.

There had been more positive conversations too. Joey talked often about his dueling progress, fantasizing about all the ways he'd improve his life once he got off the ground: move into a nicer neighborhood, help out his sister with her college tuition, and quit the Burger World job that he complained frequently about.

Seto, in turn, shared some of his own dreams--not ones concerning Kaiba Corp. that would give him away, but less ambitious dreams: of feeling close enough to someone to tell them everything he usually kept to himself, of falling asleep with his arm around someone and knowing that they'd still be there when he awoke the next morning. He was embarrassed to admit it, but those fantasies had been gradually including Joey with increased frequency.

They'd talked about so many things, and the more they talked, the more Seto felt like a fraud.

He’d tried numerous times to end the charade, but could never quite bring himself to do it. He wanted to come clean, but he also didn't want the conversations to end, and he knew they would the moment Joey knew who "Suoh" really was.

Seto weighed his options as he showered and dressed for the day.

His first instinct was to just come out and say it, but that didn't seem like the best tactic. He considered the possibility of a meet-up, but would Joey go for that when Seto had refused to so much as video chat up to this point? As far as Joey knew, Seto could be anybody. Though, Joey had always been naively trusting.

Guilt tugged again at his gut as Seto stepped into the kitchen to make coffee.

"Why the long face, bro?"

Seto started, turning to where Mokuba was eating waffles, scrambled eggs, and bacon that the chef had presumably prepared and left out for them.

"It's nothing."

"Fine. Don’t tell me."

Seto glared at him. Mokuba ignored him and went back to his phone and his food. Grabbing a strip of bacon, Seto munched thoughtfully as he sat down beside Mokuba to wait for the coffee to finish percolating.

Perhaps he should just end things, Seto considered. He didn’t have time for dating. And really, why waste all that time and energy on something that wasn’t likely to work out? Not that he hadn’t already invested a significant amount over the past few weeks…

"Are you gonna come out and say what's bothering you?" Mokuba asked after a minute, playing a puzzle game on his phone with one hand while stuffing his face with the other. "Or are you just going to keep glaring at the coffee until it’s done?"

Seto sighed, wiping bacon grease on a napkin to give him time to organize his thoughts.

"I've been talking to someone on that dating app.”

Pausing his game, Mokuba waited a beat for Seto to elaborate. "Ooookaaay…and are things going well?"

Seto's frown deepened. "Yes."

Mokuba snorted. "So I'll ask again: why the long face?"

"I didn't expect to actually like him. Initially, I was just messing around on there. But now…"

"So? Tell him how you feel. If he feels the same way, maybe you could arrange a date--or not," Mokuba backtracked when Seto's lips pursed.

"I'm not averse to the idea," Seto began slowly. "The problem is that he doesn't know who I really am."

Mokuba's eyebrows rose to hide in his bangs.

"You haven't told him yet? Why not?"

Seto swallowed and stared at the tiled pattern on the wall, not really seeing it.

"We have…history. I'm not so sure he'll be happy when he finds out who he's really been messaging."

"History? As in, you know him in real life?" Seto nodded miserably, and Mokuba's eyes lit up. "Seriously?! Who is it? Is it someone from the office?"

Seto dragged his fingers through his hair. "No. No one from work."

"Hmm…" Mokuba tapped a finger against his lips as he thought. "Well, if not from work, then they must be a duelist."

Seto's ears heated. "Am I really that predictable?"

"You never interact with people unless it's for work or at tournaments. Makes for a pretty simple process of elimination.

"Well, the most obvious guess would be Yugi,” Mokuba continued, “but I don't think you'd be this worried about rejection if that were the case. Yugi's too nice to hold this against you."

Seto grimaced at the suggestion. "Yugi's too nice, period."

Mokuba laughed at that. "Okay…someone less nice. Hmm...I would guess Pegasus, but again, you wouldn't be this worried. He'd be more likely to find it funny."

Seto scoffed. "Please. He _ wishes _ he was my type."

Mokuba raised an eyebrow at that. "So, what_ is _ your type?"

Seto sighed again, deciding Mokuba was going to guess the answer sooner or later anyway.

"Apparently dumb blondes."

Mokuba's face scrunched in confusion for a moment before his jaw dropped.

"Wait, do you mean _ Joey_?!"

Seto groaned and hid his reddening face in his hands.

"_Joey Wheeler_?"

"How many Joey's do we know?" Seto grumbled.

"I know a couple, but I doubt you're hitting on my classmates."

Seto rubbed at his temples. "So what do you think I should do?"

Mokuba thought for a second.

"See if he'll meet up somewhere? If he's mad, at least you'll be there in person to try and explain things without him being able to just hang up on you."

Seto nodded. "I was thinking the same thing."

"So are you going to do it this weekend?" Mokuba asked, scarfing down the last of his food and moving his dishes to the sink.

"I should," Seto said, rubbing his eyes. "Regardless of the outcome, it's best to get it over with quickly."

Mokuba laughed, pouring a mug of coffee.

"Slow your roll on the optimism, bro."

Walking back over, he set the steaming coffee in front of Seto. Patting his brother's shoulder, he said, "Look, Joey's a hothead, but he's also pretty laid back. Even if he gets upset, I'm sure if you give him a chance to cool down, he'll come around."

"I hope you're right," Seto muttered. Taking a sip of the coffee, he gave Mokuba a small smile. "Thanks."

"No prob. It’s kinda nice being the one giving _ you _ advice for a change.”

Seto snorted. 

“Good luck, bro," Mokuba said, giving Seto a thumbs up.

Seto mirrored the gesture, and Mokuba headed up to get ready for school.

Sighing into his coffee, Seto opened up his ongoing chat with Joey.

_ >Morning. _

_ >I want to meet. _

_ >Are you free this Saturday? _

He waited impatiently for the reply, distracting himself by plating up some scrambled eggs. The phone _ ping_ed a few minutes later, and Seto paused mid-bite to check it.

_ >Snds gr8! Where n whn? _

X

The rest of the week went by torturously slow. Seto's excitement and anxiety were off the charts, and a tireless litany if "What if?"s ran in the back of his thoughts even as he tried to bury himself in work to keep from dwelling on them.

By the time Saturday afternoon finally arrived, Seto was a nervous mess--not that he let it show. No, outwardly he looked the same: composed, aloof, and well-dressed in black slacks and a dark gray button up with three-quarter sleeves. No passing observer would know by his demeanor that it had taken Seto all morning to decide on his outfit, nor could they tell just how fast his heart was racing as he calmly sipped from his paper cup.

Not that the few other cafe patrons seemed to notice him anyway, which Seto was thankful for. His blood pressure was high enough without having to deal with random fans invading his personal space and pestering him for autographs and photos.

The tinkly little bell above the door sounded and Seto's eyes darted to the entrance. His shoulders slumped when a short brunette with blond streaks entered, her heels clacking smartly against the polished floor tiles. Seto glanced at the time on his phone for the umptheeth time since arriving and fought the urge to tap his foot.

Joey wasn't late, technically. They'd agreed to meet "around eleven," and it was only three minutes passed now. Still, with each minute that ticked by, Seto's anxiety increased exponentially.

When another five minutes had gone by with no sign of Joey, Seto began to doubt. He shot Joey a quick text.

_ >Are you on your way? _

Joey didn't immediately respond--which made sense if he was currently driving. But what if he'd already shown up? What if he saw Seto sitting there and figured it out on his own? What if he just stood Seto up? What if--

The doorbell chimed again and Seto's thoughts stopped when he saw Joey saunter in the door.

He had on a white wife beater tank top over well-worn light blue jeans. The plain outfit was dressed up with an army green pocketed vest, with several bracelets adorning both wrists. His hair hung in his face in his usual stylishly tousled manner, gleaming like a beacon in the sunlight peeking through the windows. He was smiling and scanning the people like he hadn't a care in the world. Even as Seto envied him his easygoing attitude, he hoped it would work in his favor.

Then Joey's gaze lighted on Seto, his eyes widening in recognition and surprise.

Seto's heart pounded so hard he was certain for a moment he was having a heart attack--or what it really was, a panic attack.

_ Perhaps that extra shot of espresso hadn't been the best idea, _ Seto thought as Joey made his way over to Seto's table.

"Rich Boy? That you?"

Seto took a sip of coffee and raised an eyebrow, giving himself a moment before answering. “No,” Seto drawled. “Clearly you must have me mistaken for someone else.”

“Psh, as if,” Joey said, taking up the seat across from Seto. “I see ya haven’t changed much.”

Seto’s hand tightened a fraction on his paper cup as his heart thrummed.

“More than you think.”

Joey gave him a queer look at that but brushed it off. Leaning on his arms, Joey asked, "Ya here ta meet a client or somethin'?" 

"Or something," Seto hedged.

Joey nodded. "I'm s'posed ta be meetin' someone, too, but don't look like he's here yet," he added, glancing around.

The only other people currently in the coffee shop were a couple of teenaged girls chatting a couple tables over and an elderly man reading the newspaper.

Seto's gut clenched as he tried to summon up the courage to tell Joey the truth, but no words came to him.

“So when’s yer client or whateva s’posed ta be here?”

“You don’t need to rush off if that’s your concern,” Seto said carefully, avoiding the question.

“Got some time then, huh?”

Seto nodded.

“Cool. We can catch up ‘til my date gets here.”

_ Now_, Seto thought. He should do it now. Get it over with.

“There’s no need.”

Joey snorted. “Why? Ya still think yer too good ta talk ta me?”

“No, because your date’s already here.”

“What?” Joey glanced back over his shoulder. He shook his head. “Naw, he ain’t here. Dude’s s’posed ta be my age. Said he’d have brown hair an’ blue--”

Joey stopped and stared at Seto, who raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as the realization dawned on Joey. Then Joey’s golden eyes narrowed, darkening to hard amber, and Seto held his breath. 

"You bastard," Joey spat out. “_ You’re _ ‘Suoh Hashimoto’?”

Conscious of the other customers, Joey kept his voice low, but Seto caught the way it shook.

Seto swallowed, forcing a low, “Yes,” past the lump in his throat.

Joey pushed back his chair and stood.

"I can’t believe this! What? Ya got nothin' better ta do with yer time than waste other people's? _God_, I can’t believe I actually looked forward ta this stupid meet-up! I hope ya enjoyed yerself, asswipe!”

“If you just sit down for a moment and listen--”

“No! Ya’ve wasted enough ‘a my time! I hope you choke on that coffee!"

Joey turned to go. Faster than he could think, Seto reached across the table and grabbed Joey's wrist. Joey's muscles tensed, and Seto tightened his grip to keep him from tearing away. For the first time since Joey had walked in, Seto’s nerves became overshadowed by a different emotion: anger.

"Waste your time? Was it a waste of your time when I gave you tips on how to improve your deck so you can do better in your next tournament? Or when I listened to you vent about work? And all those hours we spent actually getting to know each other? All those dark secrets we confided to each other? None of that matters to you?”

"Not if it was all a lie!"

The other people in the shop were shooting them glances. When he spoke again, Seto made sure to lower his voice.

"It wasn’t _ all _ a lie.”

"So, what? Ya legally changed yer name, then?"

Seto's lips pursed. "Please, just…let me explain. Five minutes. If you're still not satisfied, then you can storm out of here."

Joey stared at him, and Seto held his gaze, silently pleading. Yanking his hand back, Joey dropped back into his chair with a huff and crossed his arms over his chest

"Five minutes."

Seto gave a curt nod and sat back. He took a bolstering sip of now-tepid coffee, choosing his words.

"Everything I told you was based in truth--it _ was _," he insisted when Joey scoffed.

"I didn't set out with the intention to deceive anyone. I used an alias as a security measure. It was partly to weed out undesirables--gold diggers and obsessed fans--but it also gave me the opportunity to try and connect with someone genuinely, without bias. Most people on those apps have a measure of anonymity, even when using their real name, because only those in their immediate sphere of influence know who they are. I don't have that luxury.

"I don't have the time or the patience for conventional dating, and when Mokuba suggested that dating app...well, I’ll be honest, I thought it was stupid. My first attempts at making connections were instant failures. After browsing through..._ god_, I don’t even know how many profiles, I saw yours. And yes, initially I planned to just mess with you. But then we started talking and I just...never got around to it.

“You’re mad that I pretended to be someone else, but let me ask you: would you have talked as openly with me as you did if you’d known who I really was?”

Joey said nothing, but a flash of doubt crossed his face.

“I didn’t think so. If I’d told you sooner who I was, we would have devolved into our old habits, and I was enjoying our conversations too much to let that happen. I omitted minor details in order to preserve my anonymity, but I was forthright in everything else. My background, my opinions...and my feelings. I never expected to like you, but by pretending to be Suoh Hashimoto, I got to see you through a stranger’s eyes--just as you did me. I realize the clean slate was an illusion--that our...antagonistic history didn’t magically get erased because we’ve managed to get along for a few weeks--but I think this is worth exploring further, if you’re willing.”

There was a long beat of silence between them.

"Ya done?"

Seto's heart was in his throat. Swallowing it back down, he gave a nod.

"Okay."

Joey stood, and Seto's stomach sank. Not wanting to watch Joey walk away, Seto turned and looked out at the parking lot. He told himself he didn't care, even as he fought to hold back the pressure building behind his eyes.

He felt a tap on his shoulder. 

"Hey."

Seto steeled himself before looking back at Joey. He was proud when his voice came out steady.

"What?"

Joey gestured to the barista cleaning the counters behind him.

"Ya jus' gonna sit there, Rich Boy, or are ya gonna buy me a coffee?"

Seto blinked at him for a moment. Then Joey gave him a sunny smile, and Seto couldn't help but grin back. Joey held out a hand, and Seto took it and stood.

“So,” Joey began as they walked toward the cash register, “‘s it true ya actually speak Klingon?”

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: (As far as I know) The Klingon quote is legit. I actually researched Klingon quotes and then double checked them in an English-Klingon translator. If any of you are true Trekkies and know otherwise, feel free to let me know. I'm genuinely curious.
> 
> Another quote that was considered for Seto's profile that didn't make the final cut:  
“Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy.” ~Albert Einstein
> 
> This story is part of the LLF Comment Project, which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. This author invites and appreciates feedback, including:
> 
> Feedback
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> 
> If you don’t want a reply, for any reason (sometimes I feel shy when I’m reading and not up to starting a conversation, for example), feel free to sign your comment with “whisper” and I will appreciate it but not respond!


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